July Employment Law Bulletin

Conflicting Medical Opinions: Must Employee Return to Work?

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, an employer desiring to break ties with an employee because of risks related to his disability must often show that the employee is a direct threat to harm himself, others, or company property. That an employee poses a direct threat is an affirmative legal defense, meaning the employer bears the significant burden of establishing the existence of the threat. The recent case of Spencer-Martin v. Exxon Mobil Corp. (M.D. La. June 15, 2018) is an excellent example of how an employer may successfully use the direct threat defense to the Americans with Disabilities Act.